


The Customer is Always Hot .. I Mean Right

by niallmightyygirl



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, a robbery takes place so if thats triggering then dont read
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-07
Updated: 2017-02-07
Packaged: 2018-09-22 14:28:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9611465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/niallmightyygirl/pseuds/niallmightyygirl
Summary: "The supervisor?" The man tsks. "Ha! People get a little position of power and suddenly think they're above everyone else! You think you're better than me!?"You think you're a big man, huh?" The man pushes Liam. "Why dont you put me out yourself? Go on!" The man yells, shoving Liam hard.This time Liam falls to the ground. Tears are threatening to fall now."Oi! "Who the fuck are you pal?!"





	

_**'I’m on the verge of tears because of a rude customer and you step in and stand up for me’ AU** _  
_**Lilo** _

 

Today was pretty uneventful. But thats okay because Liam likes boring. No fights, no arguments, no spills. Everything went smoothly today. And how lucky that that should happen on his first day as a supervisor! He just got the promotion yesterday and he's quite proud of himself.  
  
"Look at him," One of the other employees (and also his friend) Niall had said. "He's been strutting around smiling all day. How's it feel to be in charge Liam? Should I bow down and kiss your feet too your highness?"  
  
Liam didn't let that deter him. He was feeling and doing pretty damn good so he wasn't going to let that affect him. Besides, he's sure Niall was joking anyway.

  
It wasn't until two week later, weeks without incident mind you, that things kind of, took a turn.  
  
Liam had just come back in from his lunch break and he heard yelling. This person was using harsh language. For a moment he froze up because he thought they were getting robbed.  
  
No.  
  
He wanted to be a firefighter, still wants to, he has to be brave. There was nothing around he could use as a weapon so he'd have to rely on his fists. He's not much of a fighter but he's in charge. He has to take charge and get rid of the threat. He doesn't want anyone to get hurt.  
  
"Sir I... I'm sorry but I dont know what you want me to say." Harry says.  
  
Harry was Niall's boyfriend. Well, at least Liam thinks they are. They cant keep their hands off each other if they're working the same shifts and always flirting. Harry's a nice lad.  
  
He has his hands up in surrender. Crap. They really are getting robbed. Liam's heart thudded against his chest.  
  
"I really am sorry sir. Could you please stop yelling at me?"  
"Fuck you!" Someone yells.  
  
Liam finally comes into view and sees a man leaning heavily against the counter, his hands holding him up. Harry looks over and sees Liam. His eyes are wet. He's crying. The man looks over too. His eyes are red and glassy. He's drunk. Fuck.  
  
"Liam," Harry says, relief in his voice. "I-"  
"Are you the manager?" The man speaks over Harry, his words slurring.  
  
Yeah. Definitely drunk.  
  
"No but I'm the supervisor." Liam says, trying to seem calm and collected. "Can I help you with something?"  
"The supervisor?" The man tsks. "Ha! People get a little position of power and suddenly think they're above everyone else! You think you're better than me!?"  
  
The man staggers his way towards Liam, pushing him back. As the man is sloppy drunk, Liam didn't get that far.  
  
"Sir, please do not touch me again. I'm going to politely ask you to leave or I'm calling the authorities." Liam says.  
The man laughs. "The authorities! Oooh! Big word for a little piece of shit like you! How old are you anyway? 16? Your daddy get you this job?"  
"Sir-"  
"You think you're a big man, huh?" The man pushes Liam again. "Why dont you put me out yourself? Go on!" The man yells, somehow standing up straight. "Go on! Do something about it! Hit me big man!"  
"I'm...not going to hit you sir. Just...please leave." Liam's resolve is wearing and he's getting a bit scared.  
"Please he says. No! Fuck that! You want to come in here all high and mighty, do something!" The man yells, shoving Liam hard.  
  
This time Liam falls to the ground. Tears are threatening to fall now.  
  
The man laughs. "You young blokes have no respect these days! You have no idea what its like to actually have to struggle day to day! Always getting things handed to you! Your cell phones and iPads and fancy thin computers! Back in my day it wasn't like that! But, you know what hasn't changed?"  
"Liam!" Harry calls. "I rung Niall! He's on the way!"  
  
Niall? Why the fuck didn't he call the _cops?!_  
  
"The fuck is Niall?" The man says. "That your boyfriend twink?" He asks Harry.  
  
He doesn't wait for Harry to answer and turns back to Liam.  
  
"Fighting hasn't changed." The man hovers over Liam. "Lets see what you can do big man."  
"No." Liam says softly. "Please." The tears start falling now.  
"Oi!"  
  
They all turn towards the voice. Liam glances at Harry and he's grinning. Tears are staining his face but he's still smiling.  
  
"Niall!" Harry yells.  
"'Fraid not." The voice says.  
"Who the fuck are you?" The man asks, turning away from Liam.  
  
Liam sighs a breath of relief.  
  
"Who the fuck are _you_ pal?! Where do you get off on yelling at these young lads?! Thats exactly what they are! _Young!_ You look like you're about 40! Why are you picking on them!? The fuck is so wrong in your life that you decide you want to fight a sixteen year old!? Some fuckin adult you are! Arent you the ones supposed to be teaching them how not to end up like someone like you!? At least they have jobs you wine-o! Wait. Is getting drunk 24/7 a job now!? I didn't know that! Get a fookin job, you fookin loosah!"  
  
The man turns and glares at Liam. He huffs and stomps past the guy.  
  
"Fuck this generation." He mumbles.  
"Fuck off!" The bloke yells. "Dont ever come back in this store again or you'll have to deal with me!"  
"Disrespectful little tossers." The man says and walks out the door.  
  
Liam could have imagined it but it seems like the lad let out a large breath. Was he bluffing the whole time? Wow.  
  
"Liam? Are you okay?" Harry comes up beside Liam and helps him to his feet.  
"Yeah." Liam nods. "Thanks Harry. Are you okay?"  
"'M fine."  
  
Harry turns to the bloke whose still standing there.  
  
"Thanks a lot for helping us Mister."  
"Mister?" He laughs. "I'm the same age you are."  
"Oh. Well...thanks for helping anyway."  
"Yeah." Liam adds. "We owe you one."  
"Dont worry about it. Its fine. Got a lot of experience dealing with assholes like that."  
"You do?" Liam asks. "Who-"  
"Harry!"  
"Niall!"  
  
They run into each others arms. It'd be cute if not for what just happened.  
  
"Are you okay pet? You're not hurt are you?" Niall takes Harry's face in his hands.  
"No I-" Harry starts.  
"Is this the man you called me about?" Niall glares at the bloke, pushing Harry behind him. "You need to leave _**now**_. Who the fuck do you think you are coming in here and-"  
"No Niall," Harry grabs his hand. "Its not him. He actually helped us. He made the bad man go away."  
"He did?" Niall raised an eyebrow at the guy and looked him over. "You sure?"  
"Yeah. Thanks again."  
"No problem." He smiled. "My name is Louis by the way."  
Niall nods. "Well thanks Louis. I'm sorry I yelled at you. I owe you big time."  
Niall turned back to Harry, putting his hands on his face. "You sure you're okay Harry?"  
"I am Niall." Harry nodded and grinned. "Thanks for coming."  
"I was so worried about you." Niall wrapped his arms around Harry's neck and Harry put his around Niall's back. "You have no idea."  
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you."  
  
Again, it'd be cute if Liam's heart wasn't trying to escape his chest.  
  
"Hey,"  
Liam jumped. "Oh, uh-"  
"Sorry sorry." Louis chuckled. "Just came over to make sure you're okay."  
"I am yeah. Sorry."  
"What are you apologizing for? You did nothing wrong."  
"I know but..." Liam looked down, tears trying to ring him but Liam doesnt want to answer. "I was... I'm the supervisor and I just... I froze up Louis. I was so scared. He could have hurt me or Harry and I'm supposed to be in charge. I'm supposed to protect us."  
"Hey hey," Louis rubbed his back. "Dont cry. Its not your fault Liam."  
"I'm sorry." Liam sobbed.  
  
Louis felt a hand on the back on his head and then found his face in the crevice of Louis' shoulder. It strained his back a bit since Louis was shorter than him.  
  
"Its not your fault. You stood up to him and that was really brave of you."  
"No it wasn't." Liam shook his head. "He pushed me and I... I didn't do anything."  
"It takes a strong person to back down from a challenge."  
"Louis-"  
"No, listen to me. Some things just arent worth the effort and he wasn't Liam. You shouldn't blame yourself for that man being the way he is. Its not your fault. Dont sit here and put yourself down for someone else's mistakes. Its not healthy okay? Being in charge doesn't always mean that you have to protect someone. You also have to know when to be the bigger person and let things go. In the end, the other person is still going to be miserable and if you let it get to you, you'll be miserable too and that person would have won. Do you understand what I'm saying Liam?"  
  
Liam nods, his throat clogged up.  
  
"Let me hear you say it."  
"S-s-say what?" He choked up.  
"Say you're the bigger person."  
"Louis-"  
  
Louis removed himself from Liam and Liam, for some reason, wishes he didn't. It felt...nice.  
  
"Say you're the bigger person."  
"I... I'm the b-bigger person."  
"You will not let it get to you."  
"I will not let it...get to me."  
"Good. There you go." Louis smiled. "Feel better?"  
  
Liam smiles and nods. He does. Not because of Louis' words (they were comforting yes) but because of his aura. When Louis embraced him he felt all the frustration and sadness dissipate.  
  
"Thanks Louis."  
"Anytime." Louis grins.  
  
Someone's cell rung. An R &B tune.  
  
Louis dug in his pocket.  
  
"Sorry, thats me." He put the phone to his ear. "Hello? / Still at the store. / Yes still! Something-" Louis rolled his eyes. "Yes, I got your stupid crisps Zayn. / You dont miss me, you're just hungry!"  
  
Louis laughs. What an amazing laugh. A pretty amazing guy too, Liam bets.  
  
"Oh you're a fuckin liar! You're sitting on your ass playing video games right now!"  
  
Louis turns around and grabs a couple packs of crisps off the shelf. He goes up to the register.  
  
"Maybe you should stop smoking then!" Louis laughs. "Hey uh, Harry right? Sorry but can you ring me up? Gotta get back home to the missus." Louis laughs again. "So testy tonight. / Whoa! Who taught you that kind of language!?"  
  
Harry rings up Louis, tells him the price and Louis gives him the exact change.  
  
"I'm on the way now. / Yeah I got those too. / I know I am. / Love you too. / Okay. See ya soon." Louis hangs up. "Bye lads. Be careful tonight yeah?"  
"Thanks Louis!" Harry yells as he walks out the door.  
  
What a nice guy. That Zayn is lucky.  
  
"Wow..." Niall says after a silence fell over them. "I cant believe you lot almost got robbed."  
"It was so scary Niall." Harry says, suddenly serious. "All I could think about was... Anyway! Thanks for coming."  
"You're welcome. But hey, is anyone else here?"  
"Right." Liam looks around. "Where's Sandy and Josh? Weren't they working today?"  
"Well, Sandy said he had an emergency at home with his wife and... I'm not really sure where Josh went."  
"He just left?!" Liam yelled.  
  
Thats great! A supervisor for two weeks and they almost got robbed and he's lost control of one of the employees. What about Niall and Harry? He's in charge of them and they're friends and all but sometimes they dont do what they should. Sandy is the manager so he cant really be mad at him.  
  
"This is just fuckin great." Liam mumbles.  
"We're all alright though Liam." Harry supplies. "That should be all that matters right?"  
Liam sighs. "Yeah. You're right. Come here."  
  
Liam pulls them into a group hug.  
  
"Love you guys."  
"We love you too."

*****

 

Thankfully no more incidents occurred over the next week. Sandy was thankful no one was hurt and it turns out Josh was out back smoking but then took off for a bit. He came in as Liam, Harry and Niall were hugging. Liam didn't really want anything to happen to him but he did tell Sandy. Sandy fired him anyway. The cops were called and there was a report filed. Liam kind of wishes Louis had stayed because maybe they would have given him a hero's medal or something. Louis handled the situation amazingly.

There's a new worker. Her name is Eleanor. She's nice.  
  
"Wow. That happened just _last week?_ " Eleanor asked Niall who was telling her what happened.  
"Yeah. Some bloke called Louis came in and helped us though. I'm scared to think of what would have happened if he didn't show up."  
"Louis? I know a Louis." She says. "He lives around here too. I wonder if it was him."  
  
Liam hasn't been able to stop thinking about Louis since that day. He wishes he'd have gotten his number but then he thinks its stupid. Louis helped them in a crisis. He was just being a good Samaritan. A lot of people would have done the same. Then again, a lot of people wouldn't have made Liam feel the way Louis did. A lot of people probably wouldn't have hugged Louis and held him until he calmed down. A lot of people wouldn't have held Liam's face in their hands. A lot of people wouldn't have looked at him the way Louis did. Niall and Harry do that to each other...  
  
No Liam. He was just being a good person.  
  
He would like to know this Louis better though.

 

While on their lunch break, Eleanor pulled out her phone.  
  
"Hey Louis. / I'm fine. You?" She smiles and nods. "Thats great. / I have a new job. / Yeah. Its been great so far. The people are really nice. Speaking of, they told me that they almost got robbed last week and some- / Yeah. / Yeah thats exactly what they told me! It was you then? / That was really nice of you Louis. / Yeah I'm here now. / Liam?"  
  
Liam looked up at her, eyebrows scrunched up. Louis was-  
  
"Yeah he's here too. Why? Do you- Oh. Well uhm... I... I guess thats okay. You'll have to buy something though."  
  
Is Louis actually coming here?! Holy fuck!  
  
"Bye."  
  
Liam's heart raced. Louis was...coming to see him. Well, probably most likely to see Eleanor but he's coming here!  
  
"So Li-" Eleanor started.  
  
Liam got up and ran into the employee restroom. He looked in the mirror and made sure his hair looked okay, made sure his breath was minty fresh, made sure he looked presentable. Wait. Why was he doing this? He and Louis arent dating.  
  
_Yet._  
  
Liam shook his head. Its fine. Its perfectly fine to have a crush on someone who helped you.  
  
But...is it weird if you only met that person once and only for ten minutes?  
  
Nevertheless, Liam's heart still lurched in his throat when Louis walked in the door half an hour later.  
  
"Liam! Hey mate!" Louis called.  
"H-h-hi." Liam blushed and immediately looked down.  
"You okay?" Louis asked.  
  
Liam nodded.  
  
"Hey El. Good to see you again."  
"You too."  
  
Louis turned back to Liam.  
  
"You've not had any more problems have you?"  
"No."  
"Are you sure you're okay?"  
"Yes."  
"Why arent you looking at me then?"  
  
Oh no. Did he hurt Louis' feelings? Liam willed his blush to go away and slowly looked up at Louis.  
  
His eyes... They're so...blue. They look so deep and powerful. Wise.  
  
"Its great to see you're not hurt."  
"Thanks."  
"You're not letting it get to you are you?"  
Liam shook his head. "No." He smiled. "I'm the bigger person."  
"I know you are Liam. And as long as you are, you'll do great in life I'm certain."  
  
They talked for a while after that. Louis following Liam around the store while he worked. Louis' phone blared. He took it out his pocket.  
  
"Oh for fucks sake Zayn!" Louis groaned. He typed something and put the phone back in his pocket. "Anyway-"  
"Is Zayn your boyfriend?"  
  
Louis laughed and Liam blushed again.  
  
"Sorry. I shouldn't have asked that. Its not my business."  
"Zayn's just my roommate." Louis answered. "He just broke up with his girlfriend and he's being a bit clingy."  
"Oh."  
  
Louis' single. Thats great.  
  
"Why?" Louis asked.  
  
Liam didn't know what to say after that. He turned and pretended to be sorting things.  
  
"Oh I see." Louis says.  
  
Liam didn't have to turn to know Louis was grinning.  
  
"You want a piece of the Tommo."  
  
"What?!" Liam turned abruptly and knocked over a few things.  
  
He bent to pick them up as Louis laughed.  
  
When he looked back up at Louis, he had a serious expression on his face.  
  
"Is it..." He started. "Is it weird to say that I haven't been able to stop thinking about you?" Louis says.  
"Y-you have?"  
"Yeah. I think you're like..." Louis shrugged. "I want to get to know you. Is that okay?"  
Liam smiled and nodded. "Yes. More than."  
"Great." Louis pulled out his phone. "Can I have your number?"  
  
Liam programmed his number in and handed Louis back his phone.  
  
"I haven't stopped thinking about you either." He says.  
"Yeah?"  
"Yeah."  
  
They stared at each other smiling for a few moments. Or hours. Days. Who knows.  
  
"Oi! Lovebirds!" Niall calls. "Need a bit of assistance over here! Assistant manager! _Assist!_ "  
"I'll call you later yeah?" Louis says.  
"I'll be waiting."

*****

 

"And thats how I met your father." Liam finishes.  
  
A boy with fluffy brown hair and deep blue eyes smiles up at Liam.  
  
"Thats a nice story dad." The boy says.  
"A great story, I'd say." Louis says coming into the room and kissing Liam on the cheek. "Really great."  
  
Another boy with dark hair and pale skin turns to Niall and Harry.  
  
"You knew Uncle Li and Uncle Louis back then too?" He asks.  
"Yeah. Been friends for a long time." Harry answers, slowly rocking the sleeping baby girl in his arms.  
"Damn." He says. "How old _are_ you lot?"  
  
Niall, Liam and Louis laugh. Harry shakes his head.  
  
"He gets it from you Niall." He kisses the girl on the forehead. "Cant believe what you've turned our son into."  
"Irishmen through and through. Right son?"  
"Right dad." The boys gets up. "Come on Fred. Lets go play footie."  
"Definitely your son."  
Niall kisses Harry on the cheek. "You love me."  
"Do I really though?" Harry smirks.  
Niall laughs and kisses him this time on the lips. "Well I love you."  
  
Louis tips Liam's head back and kisses him on the lips.  
  
"Love you." They both say at the same time.  
  
Louis laces their fingers and sets his forehead on Liam's.

  
"Forever."

**Author's Note:**

> Had an idea but lost it but I hope you still liked it.


End file.
